Though The Avenue Gallery in Oak Bay has changed hands, its new owner has promised to maintain the shop’s feel.
Longtime employee Kathleen Prince announced she bought the 23-year-old business on June 1 from its previous owner Larry Wheeler.
Conveniently located on Oak Bay Avenue, nestled in a small space between Starbucks and Ivy’s Bookshop, the store has offered folks in Greater Victoria access to Canadian jewelry, ceramics and paintings since 2002.
Though Prince has only been at the helm of the business for a few days, she first stepped into the store 11 years ago – three years after graduating from the University of Victoria (UVic) with a master’s degree in art history. There to interview for a gallery associate position, she quickly snagged the gig, spurring what would become a long-term career.
Over the next eight years, the now owner used the skills she had developed at UVic – she also graduated from the school with a bachelor’s degree in art history – to help customers peruse the wide range of artworks on display.
“The actual education and knowledge I received ... was invaluable,” Prince said. “Those degrees gave me the asset of critical thinking and being able to look at a piece of art – or even look at a situation or an interaction with someone – from a more critical perspective.”
In 2022, an unfortunate circumstance led to Prince’s promotion when the shop’s founder, Heather Wheeler, unexpectedly died. Wheeler’s husband, Larry, assumed ownership of the store, and Prince became its manager.
"There was grief and sadness around that transition, so obviously it was quite an adjustment,” she said.
Prince's mandate as the business’s new manager was to preserve its vibe – and that’s exactly what she did.
“We always found it was such a compliment when people would come in and they didn't know there'd been any change,” she said. “That's when we knew ... we're doing a good job.”
Prince remained in that position for the following three years, until Larry decided to step away from the business.
“When this opportunity arose to take over ownership, it just really felt like the natural next step, and I didn't want to turn down the opportunity,” she said.
As before, Prince explained her goal is to maintain the store that she and Wheeler spent so long nurturing.
“At first, I don't want there to be a lot of change,” she said. “I want the clientele of the gallery who've come to support us for years and years and years to still be able to recognize us as The Avenue Gallery that they've known."
The owner added that the shop will "evolve over the years” as she pours more of her tastes and style into it, hopefully attracting the clients that have come to love all the business has to offer.
“People tell us all the time how glad they are that we're still here, which is really nice,” she said. “It really has become such a landmark in Oak Bay.”
